Trombonist Peter Ellefson is Professor of Music at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, having been a faculty member since 2002 and Chair of the Brass Department since 2014.

Education

Ellefson is from

Myrtle Creek, Oregon Myrtle Creek is a city in Douglas County, Oregon, United States. The population was 3,439 at the 2010 census. History Myrtle Creek was named for the groves of Oregon myrtle (also known as California laurel), growing nearby. A Myrtle Creek post ...

and is the youngest son of music educator, Wendell Ellefson (deceased 1994). A 1980 graduate of

South Umpqua High School South Umpqua High School is a public high school in Myrtle Creek, Oregon, United States. Academics In 2008, 68% of the school's seniors received their high school diploma A high school diploma or high school degree is a North American academic sc ...

, Ellefson attended and graduated with honors in 1984, from

Linfield College Linfield University is a private university with campuses in McMinnville, and Portland, Oregon. Linfield Wildcats athletics participates in the NCAA Division III Northwest Conference. Linfield reported a combined 1,755 students after the fall ...

in McMinnville, Oregon, where he was honored as the Most Outstanding Alumni of 2012. He received his master's degree in 1985 from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

and began doctoral study at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

in 1991. His primary teachers have been Warren Baker, Mark Lawrence, Frank Crisafulli, M. Dee Stewart and Joseph Alessi.

Career

Ellefson has been a frequent guest musician with the Boston Symphony, the

Chicago Symphony The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

and the New York Philharmonic. From 1992-2002 he was a member of the Seattle Symphony, where he participated in dozens of recordings, performing on trombone, euphonium and bass trumpet. He was the principal trombone for many of Seattle Opera's productions of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

's Der Ring Des Nibelungen. While in Seattle he also participated in hundreds of recording sessions for film, television and video game soundtracks. Peter Ellefson has released three solo recordings. In 2010, he released his first solo recording titled ''Pura Vida'' on the

Summit Records Summit Records, Inc. is an internationally distributed record label that evolved out of the large brass ensemble Summit Brass in the late 1980s. It was established by David Hickman and Ralph Sauer. Four Summit Records recordings have been nom ...

label. In 2017, he released À la Manière de Defaye and in 2019, his most recent, “3.” He has also recorded with the Chicago Symphony, CSO Brass,

Cincinnati Pops The Cincinnati Pops Orchestra is a pops orchestra based in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, founded in 1977 out of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Its members are also the members of the Cincinnati Symphony, and the Pops is managed by the same ...

, New York Philharmonic and Oregon Symphony. He is on the faculty of the Alessi Seminar and has taught at Northwestern University, Roosevelt University,

University of Costa Rica The University of Costa Rica (Spanish: ''Universidad de Costa Rica,'' abbreviated UCR) is a public university in the Republic of Costa Rica, in Central America. Its main campus, Ciudad Universitaria Rodrigo Facio, is located in San Pedro Mo ...

and the Music Academy of the West.

Contributions

Ellefson has authored articles on Wagner and Bruckner in the Journal of the International Trombone Association and in the Brass Player's Cookbook.

Personal

Ellefson is married to

Deborah Rutter Deborah F. Rutter is an American arts executive. She is the president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Rutter is the first woman to head the Center, overseeing the center's operations in presenting theater, ...

, President of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellefson, Peter Living people Indiana University faculty Year of birth missing (living people) Linfield University alumni People from Myrtle Creek, Oregon Bienen School of Music alumni Indiana University alumni